Waffles

Since I posted about the Waffle Day, I might as well post about how to make waffles. Unlike most other dishes, you need a specialty item if you want to make them. It's really hard to kludge together a waffle iron, so I would not recommend trying. However, from personal experience, I would recommend getting a good waffle iron if you want to enjoy making waffles often. I have have found the cheaper models have timers that should be ignored, this will lead to a non-soggy waffle, fully cooked result.

If you are stuck with a cheap model that doesn't do quite a good job, or the timer doesn't work well. You are in luck, you can wait until the steam mostly stops coming out of the iron as the waffle cooks, this means the waffle is done. It may not be nice and crispy, but it definitely won't be soggy or uncooked.

 Thoroughly mix all the dry ingredients together.












In a separate bowl, mix the wet ingredients. I try to melt the butter so that it is liquid but not hot. Once I have added the butter to the rest of the liquid ingredients, I constantly stir so that the butter doesn't separate. This will ensure that the butter is evenly distributed throughout the final batter.







Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just mixed, ignoring any lumps. You do not want to over blend in this stage, that only leads to a tougher waffle. You can use the batter right away or let it sit until ready to use. I usually let it sit for a few hours, covered in the refrigerator before using; just as I would for pancakes. This give the batter time to fully hydrate the flour.





Depending on your iron, ladle about a 1/2 cup of batter into the center. Too much and it will over flow the sides and make a mess, too little and you won't have a fully developed waffle. Experience is the greatest teacher here as every iron is different. Waffles can be kept warm in an oven set at 200 F until you are ready to serve them, or they can be enjoyed the instant they are done.





Waffles
About 6 waffles
Preheat a waffle iron. Whisk together in a large bowl:
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Thoroughly blend in another bowl:
3 eggs
1/4 cup to 1 cup (1/2 to 2 sticks) butter, melted
1 1/2 cups milk
Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. Combine with a few swift strokes of the whisk. If desired gently stir in any additions (eg Blueberries)
To cook, follow the waffle maker manufactures instructions.

Depending on if you made the recipe with the low amount of butter or high amount it will change the price from $2.14 to $4.28, this works out to $0.36 and upwards of $0.72 per individual waffle. Topping and extras like berries are not factored in.